Aputure Gigtube

The Aputure released Gigtube, a very useful accessory, which is much needed by photographers since first DSLR's with live view appeared. It is an innovative remote viewfinder device that includes a LCD screen. Compatible with any camera with a video output, the screen can automatically display an image immediately after shooting it, or can stream the video feed from live view. Moreover, the LCD screen is rotatable for different angle views and this gadget offers the remote shutter release function.


There are several models available for most well-known Canon and Nikon cameras. The one for Canon Rebel series should work with the Powershot G10 also, since remote release sockets are compatible. Not as versatile and convenient as articulated screen on the G11, but still very useful.

Available at Adorama.com

Window Shopping

This is the window of the Holt Renfrew store on Bloor, the most creatively decorated in Toronto.




HDR images taken handheld with the Canon G10. Click to enlarge.

The Canon G11 review

The review of the Canon Powershot G11 is finally up: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canong11

It confirms what I suspected: the G11's high ISO quality isn't dramatically better than G10's. The difference is about one stop and it is achieved by more aggressive noise reduction rather than by better sensor quality. If you shoot RAW with both cameras, run the photos through the same noise reduction program and downsize the G10's photos to 10 MP you wouldn't see much difference. However, at low ISOs the G10 has visible resolution advantage. I still think producing a camera with G10-like sensor and articulated screen makes sense. Well, until more micro 4/3 cameras come out and their prices start to drop. Notice how much better the Panasonic GF1 is in terms of image quality! Of course, it HAS TO BE given the 2X price difference, but I'm sure in the next couple of years the m4/3 cameras will kill the G series, unless Canon puts a much larger sensor in it.

Nocturne

Here is a pretty cool new video shot by Vincent Laforet with the new Canon 1D Mk IV:



It's a short 3-minute movie (not including the titles) of something like 'David Lynch meets John Carpenter' style shot in 'available darkness'.

The Canon G10 vs Medium Format Film

Michael Reichmann of luminous-landscape.com compared picture quality of the Canon Powershot G10 with that of Digital Hasselblad and found them very similar on print. Since I don't have a Digital Hasselblad yet, let me show you a little non-scientific comparison between pictures of my G10 and Mamiya 645 film camera with 80mm f/1.9 lens. The film was Fuji Reala scanned with the Epson V700, resized and cropped to match the G10's images.

Canon 1:



Mamiya 1:




Canon 2:



Mamiya 2:



Click to see full resolution images on Flickr.com

As you can see both cameras can resolve similar amount of detail. Mamiya's images look overall better, but don't forget: we are comparing an average consumer grade zoom with one of the best manual prime lenses made by Mamiya.

However, the most obvious difference is in dynamic range. The film got more shadow details on the first photo and beautifully captured all subtle gradations of the overcast sky on the second one, while the G10 blew out the sky completely (I added the blue fill later in Photoshop).

Even though top models of compact cameras are getting close to medium format in resolution, they still have a long way to go before they can match the dynamic range of film.

Autumn Lake

Click to enlarge.

Canon Powershot G10

Boat

Click to enlarge.

Canon Powershot G10

Canon G10 with a flip-out screen?

As I have written already, the most significant improvement of the G11 over G10 is the flip-out screen giving a photographer much more creative flexibility. However, not everyone would want to trade it for 4.7 megapixels, especially landscape shooters who appreciate every extra pixel under good light and don't care much about low light performance, which, however good, still sucks in comparison with a DSLR. Not to mention 10 years of "the more megapixels the better" propaganda has taken its effect that cannot be undone overnight.

I think Canon should make something like Powershot G10 Mark II with flip-out screen and the same 14.7MP sensor. No doubt, it would be a great hit!

New samples from Canon Powershot S90

Dpreview.com has published a gallery of S90's photos: http://www.dpreview.com/news/0909/09091802canons90gallery.asp

The pictures don't look exciting to me – noisy, not very sharp and with quite a bit of purple fringing. PF was a plague of my old G5 and I'm happy that G10 almost doesn't have it. It's an unpleasant surprise to see it again.

Of course, it's good that ISO 800 and 1600 are usable now, but at low ISO pixel quality isn't any better than G10's, maybe even worse, and it's 10 MP, not 14.7 Since S90 and G11 share the same sensor and image processor, I expect similar quality from G11. Probably better, because of sharper lens, but not MUCH better.

Of course, those are JPEGs from the camera, not RAW conversions, but Canon's in camera processing is so good that I wouldn't expect much better results from computer RAW conversions. Maybe better and less aggressive noise reduction and little more detail.

So the only actual advantage of the new G11 is flip-out screen, which is very useful, but cannot really justify an upgrade from G10. Soon we will see whether my conclusions are true...